ZvBox Makes Internet Video Available on All Home HDTVs Through Coax

Vic Odryna, CEO of ZeeVee, Inc., tells us about the company’s newest product, the ZvBox. He shares why he believes it is the hottest new device in the industry.

CEDN: ZeeVee has been getting a lot of press lately for your new ZvBox PC-to-HDTV device. How is ZvBox different?

VO: ZvBox, which started shipping in early August, represents a new product category called ‘localcasting’ since it uses the home's existing coaxial wiring to transmit a new high-definition TV channel to all the HDTVs in the home. Anything you can get online or on your computer is now watchable from the comfort of your couch, without the clutter of new wiring or set-top boxes in the living room and without the complexity and interference problems of wireless solutions.

CEDN: What do you see as the major advantages of the localcasting approach?

VO: Well first, we feel ZvBox is a great value since one unit drives every HDTV in the home and delivers everything that you can access through your computer without any additional fees. It’s also easy to use, since consumers tune into the Zv channel as they would any other cable TV channel. Since it uses the video output of the computer, ZvBox has the most extensive compatibility with all forms of Internet content and local media, without adding any additional processing load on the computer. In addition to video content, ZvBox extends any computer application to the home’s HDTVs, including email, Web browsing, photos and music. No other device can deliver all of this.

CEDN: What do you think is the biggest variable that will determine market acceptance for ZvBox?

VO: ZeeVee will be successful if the mass market moves to adopt Internet-based TV and movies. Fortunately, this movement is happening on a massive scale with traditional broadcasters such as ABC and new entrants such as Hulu delivering high-value video content online.

CEDN: What target markets are you selling ZvBox to?

VO: While over time we believe all homes will benefit from ZvBox, we initially have two major target markets. The early adopters of new consumer electronics, many of whom are already familiar with Internet TV, are obvious targets. But our research also shows strong pent up demand with a group we are calling ‘King/Queen of the Castle,' folks who have invested in all the right home entertainment devices but still do not have an elegant way to connect their HDTVs to Internet video content. This is a problem that many in the custom installer and A/V market have been trying to address for a long time.

CEDN: What are ZeeVee’s long term goals?

VO: ZeeVee's long term goal is to become the platform of choice for connecting the universe of online and computer content and applications to HDTVs in the home. ZvBox is the simplest and most comprehensive method for doing that so we are optimistic we can achieve this goal.

CEDN: What do you feel is ZeeVee’s greatest accomplishment in creating ZvBox? What have you really provided the industry that was not there before?

VO: ZeeVee's greatest strength is our ZvCast technology. We have essentially taken very expensive TV station equipment, including MPEG-2 video compression and RF modulation and allowed you to create your own in-home TV station via an affordable consumer electronics device. That was no small feat.